You Promised
by The Solar Surfer
Summary: Tadashi races to save Callaghan, but he's stopped before he can enter the building. He must then deal with the consequences of his decision. Eventual Spoilers for anyone who hasn't seen the movie.
1. Chapter 1

**Well, I watched Big Hero 6 some weeks ago and I still think a certain character death was unwarranted. So, I wrote this in response, because I refuse to accept fictional deaths.**

**Some spoilers if you haven't watched the movie yet.**

**(This is also part of a larger fic, in which events change accordingly to the survival of this particular character, but it involves an OC in a major role and I feel that this was the only part of the story that was really cathartic for me). **

**I might post the rest of the story for anyone that asks. Its not done yet, though, and like I said before, features an OC, and I guess that might be a turn-off for some. It would still follow the Yokai storyline, since Tadashi's survival hasn't stopped anything. I think Hiro would still use Baymax & Co. to stop him, but keep their superhero moonlighting a secret. Hilarity and drama ensues.**

**Tadashi would be the narrator for the whole thing, probably.**

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><p><em>FWOOOM!<em>

The building exploded.

They went flying backwards.

Tadashi felt like he was weightless. It was kind of like a dream, one of the nice ones where he felt like he was floating, safe and in control. A part of him didn't want it to end, this sort of peaceful air, but the sight before him – the building expanding, bursting apart, flames surging out in a devilish cloud – reminded Tadashi that that could've been him, in there, inside, had he been a little faster.

The flight came to an abrupt end with Tadashi landing on his back. The wind was knocked straight out of him and Tadashi just lied there on the ground, in a daze. He looked up at the sky, admiring the pretty red sparks in the clouds, unable to grasp that he had failed (survived), that he was too late (safe), that Professor Callaghan was….

The word escaped him.

The person who had grabbed him (rescued him) had been shaken loose by the blast, and landed a couple meters away. Tadashi shook his head, regained his senses and was about to ask if they were all right, but another face filled his vision, one all too familiar.

The boy was shouting right into his face. At first, Tadashi couldn't hear because his ears were ringing, but slowly the voice came into focus. "…Tadashi!_ Tadashi!_ Are you all right?"

"I'm okay, little bro," He sat himself up, rubbed his aching shoulder. It had taken the brunt of his fall. All things considering, it could've been a lot worse. Tadashi took a deep breath, trying to fully comprehend his utter luck. "I-I'm okay."

"Then what were _you thinking, knucklehead_?!" Hiro's face switched from concern to rage in an instant. Tadashi didn't know what to expect when his little brother raised his arms and started hitting Tadashi, his head, his chest, punctuating his own words with each blow."You know you're not supposed to go into a burning building if you're already outside! It's, like, a law or something!"

"Ow, ow, okay, okay, Hiro! I get the message!" Tadashi relented, bringing up his arms to defend against the slaps. Truthfully, Hiro didn't hurt him, hadn't intended to. In fact, it helped wake Tadashi up a bit, got him to focus. "Look, I was just trying to do a good thing!"

"So? You're not a firefighter, Tadashi! You're my brother!" Hiro snapped back, but his previous ire was starting to ebb. His voice grew high and wavering, cracking near the end. "What was I supposed to do if you were – if you were gone? Whose supposed to make fun of me, whose supposed to make sure I don't – I-I don't…I c-can't…"

There was a painful yank in Tadashi's gut as he watched the tears well up in Hiro's eyes. The boy covered his face to hide them, but Tadashi didn't care. Without a word, he enveloped his younger brother in the tightest hug his arms could allow. Had he been in that building, to save Professor Callaghan like he wanted to, he wouldn't be here right now with Hiro. He held on, horrified by the irrational thought that Hiro might be ripped away from him by the cruel hands of Fate, who still wanted her tragedy.

The thought of leaving Hiro terrified him. Only now Tadashi realized how foolish he was, to go diving into the fire without a second thought. What would his parents think? Unlike Hiro, Tadashi had been old enough to remember the both of them, and they knew all too well of their oldest son's penchant for trying to do the right thing, no matter how much trouble it put himself in.

Tadashi could still hear his father's voice, chastising him: _Brave, yet stupid_.

After they died, Tadashi had promised Hiro he would always be there for him.

He closed his eyes, squeezed tighter, and rubbed the back of Hiro's head, touching his soft hair. Today, he had broken that promise.

"I'm sorry, Hiro," Tadashi whispered and a long silence stretched out, filled only by the sound of crackling fire and the soft sobs of the boy. He didn't know how he was going to make it up to Hiro (besides not trying to die). "I promise, I'll never do that again."

"You better not," Hiro sniffed, drawing back and scowling at his older brother. Tadashi couldn't help but smile - even though Hiro was angry at him, Tadashi couldn't help but appreciate the fact that he was still here to see it. "Do you know how upset Aunt Cass would be when she found you jumped into a burning building? You know what that would do to her? To me?"

"Yeah, I know," he muttered, getting a little annoyed with the prolonged guilt trip, but knowing better than to complain. It was his fault this happened, and now he had to face the consequences. "I just got lucky."

"Which doesn't make any sense," Hiro said, getting off of Tadashi to pick up his baseball hat that had fallen off when he made for the burning building. "Because you weren't wearing your lucky hat." He came back over and stuck it on Tadashi's had, made sure it fit snug. "You should probably say thank you, by the way, to the guy that saved you."

"Oh, right," Tadashi had completely forgotten about the other person, so focused was he on Hiro and thanking the Universe he was still breathing right now. Looks like he had a more physical being to thank. "But, uh…where are they?"

They looked towards where his savior had landed, and only saw a blank spot. Whoever it was, had disappeared while the two brothers weren't looking.

"I don't know, maybe they walked away?" Hiro wondered, walking around and checking the grass just beyond the pavement. There were sirens in the distance; help was finally coming. "They must be all right, if they can still move, right?"

Tadashi didn't know, but smiled and nodded to ease his brother's worries. "Sure, I suppose. Come on, maybe we can thank them later. Let's go before Aunt Cass starts to worry."

Unfortunately, the only way Aunt Cass wouldn't have worried is if they had both stayed home that night.

Since that was impossible, Aunt Cass was _freaking out_.

The two brothers had made their way back up the hill, where the crowd had gathered. Most were people attending the science fair. Some were being treated by paramedics and loaded into ambulances, but no one seemed particularly injured. The two had to look around a bit, trying to sift through the numerous faces and voices, until the woman in question burst out the crowd and grabbed them both in a mighty bear hug.

"Oh, my god, you're all right!" the woman cried, dark hair frazzled and looking to be near tears. All this crying around, Tadashi wasn't sure he could keep it in himself. She backed up, grabbed both of their faces to examine them, saying, "Are either of you hurt? Were you inside the building?"

"No, we showed up when we saw what happened," Tadashi said, trying to pull out of his aunt's iron grip. But Cass was not to be defeated. She fixed him with a shocked look.

"You didn't go _inside_, did you?" she demanded, jaw dropping and green eyes going wide. Tadashi almost cursed. He had underestimated how well she knew him. Aunt Cass took his non-answer thusly. "Tadashi! I can't believe you! Don't you know how dangerous that is?"

"Yeah, I know, I just wanted to save Professor Callaghan," Tadashi looked down, finally pulling out of Cass's hand. She looked up at him, frowning, but he couldn't meet her eyes. "He was still inside when it…when the building just…"

"It blew up," Hiro finished baldly, earning a frustrated look from his older brother. But Hiro ignored him, seemed to be pleased with humbling Tadashi further. Upon retrospect, Tadashi would understand Hiro's lack of respect for Professor Callaghan's life as one for his own; a respect that manifested into teasing, because of course it did. "Good thing someone saved Tadashi though. Looks like I'm not the only person who thinks you're an idiot."

He smacked Hiro's shoulder, about to say something before Aunt Cass cut them off. "That's enough, you two. Tadashi, don't ever do something like that again, you understand? I really don't want to have to ground a full-grown man, even if you _are_ my boy." She heaved a deep sigh, hands on her hips as she led them away. "It's been a long night, and it seems like everyone wants me to get fat by stressing me out. I'm going to eat _so many_ donuts when I get home…"

The two boys were checked by the paramedics before they could leave. Hiro was fine, and Tadashi had only managed to earn a couple bruises – he didn't even get burned, unless you counted having all the hair on his arms getting singed off. The word 'luck' was thrown around again, but Tadashi made sure to mention the person who had stopped him from going inside the building. He couldn't give an accurate description to the police, however; the fire was bright, and the person had been covered in soot, dirty and practically unrecognizable. They had been smaller and shorter than him, and now that he thought about it, Tadashi was starting to think that it could have been a girl. The police were a little disappointed, but told Tadashi they would ask around, see if anyone saw them.

He also had to tell them about Professor Callaghan, who had yet to be found. The police did not sound surprised by this information, so Tadashi assumed they already knew. He wondered if they even believed his story about his savior, who had yet to be identified - no one could recall seeing them, and Tadashi had heard a couple cops whispering amongst themselves about 'hallucinations' and 'trauma'.

It made Tadashi angry - he _knew_ what he saw, but he had no proof and couldn't remember enough to say otherwise.

The cops eventually let the Hamada's go home, all still in one piece. Tadashi, already exhausted, couldn't believe he had to climb three stories just to get to his bed. But it would be soft and safe, so he decided it would be worth it…even if he had to carry a sleeping Hiro, whom he decided not to wake up.

Aunt Cass gave each of them a last kiss good night before ushering them to bed. The room was dark when he got up there, but something big and furry brushed past Tadashi's leg as he entered – Mochi, their Calico cat, welcomed him home by rubbing against his legs. Tadashi would have pet him if his arms weren't full of teenage angst.

He set Hiro on his bed - the boy curled up into the sheets almost instinctively, mumbling something that Tadashi couldn't quite understand. Before he fell asleep, Hiro had been berating Tadashi and making fun of him. It was quite a turnaround in behavior after their conversation in the direct aftermath of the explosion. But Tadashi took this to mean that Hiro was back to his old self and was merely trying to get things back to normal as quickly as possible.

It made him smile a little. Nothing could faze Hiro.

He flopped down onto his own bed, so glad to meet the pillow that he didn't bother with the sheets. After the fire, Tadashi felt too warm all over, like somehow he was still reliving the experience. He remembered to kick off his shoes before falling asleep, however, and felt Mochi jump onto his bed. The cat kneaded the blankets and curled up against the back of his knees, purring like a lawnmower. The sound soothed his thoughts of the fire and he closed his eyes.

And Tadashi drifted off, glad to be home.

**(** **●-●)**

He awoke later that night - 2:32 AM, if his clock was telling the truth - to movement on his bed. Tadashi thought it was Mochi moving around, but the cat wasn't that heavy, or that big. He was almost too tired to look around, but did so anyways, wondering what could have woken him up at this time of night (better not be serial killers).

It was Hiro. Eyes half-lidded and hair even messier than usual, Tadashi's younger brother crawled onto the bed. He fell into the unoccupied space on Tadashi's side, huddled right up next to him. His hair got into Tadashi's nose and he almost sneezed - it still smelt like smoke, and it reminded him once again of what might have happened.

But he didn't try to push Hiro off or tell him to _go away, you have your own bed _or _you're taking up too much space_. Tadashi didn't speak or laugh at him or make him feel embarrassed for being scared at night - just pretended he was still sleeping as Hiro wrapped his skinny arms around his older brother, like a baby koala, burying his head into Tadashi's side and sighing with contentment.

The two brothers went back to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**Here you go, chapter two! Hope you enjoy!**

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><p>Chapter Two<p>

Tadashi didn't know how long it would take for things to get back to normal again.

But he didn't think it would be the next morning.

Aunt Cass opened the Lucky Cat Cafe at nine o' clock, at the same time as she had been doing every day for the past twenty years. The two brothers rose to the smell of coffee being brewed and donuts being baked - a custom so traditional that for the first thirty minutes Tadashi had completely forgotten what had happened the night before.

He got up before Hiro did and took a shower, because he smelled weird. Standing under the showerhead, Tadashi stared at the drain and wondered why all the water that was washing off of him was coming out a strange grey/brown color.

Tadashi didn't know what to make of it. Later, he went downstairs in fresh clothes and still-damp hair, to help Aunt Cass man the cafe. She was busy serving customers, making their drinks and ensuring that none of the baked goods got burned while in the oven or toaster. Tadashi usually did the extraneous things, like cleaning the counter and tables, refilling the napkin holders, or washing the dishes.

The first thing Tadashi would do when coming down the stairs was say hello to his aunt and take up the first thing he saw. This happened to be dishes – Sunday was notorious for midday brunches, and this day was as busy as any other.

Tadashi had just picked up a bin filled with dirty plates and had carried it over to the sink in the back, when he started listening to the chatter filtering in through the cafe.

"_...did you hear...?"_

_ "...last night, at the SFIT's science exhibition..."_

_ "...awful fire..."_

"_...could hear the sirens all over the city..."_

_ "...there was nothing left..."_

It hit Tadashi like a brick wall. Flashes of the burning building, the heat on his skin, – _so close, so close –_ the gale force winds as the columns crumbled like paper –

_– Callaghan still inside_ –

– _Hiro screaming –_

_ KL-KRSSH!_

Tadashi jumped, the loud noise bringing him back to the present. He looked down, saw the shattered plate, and for a moment couldn't move. He looked at his hands, but they were blurry. He realized, after a moment, that they are shaking, and he can barely see through the sudden tears in his eyes.

"Tadashi, is everything all –?"Aunt Cass rushed in to see Tadashi on the floor, with his back against the cabinet, face pressed to his knees and fingers knotted in his hair, surrounded by shards of porcelain and shaking slightly.

"_Oh,_" She dropped to her knees, resting a hand on his shoulder. Tadashi jumped, looking up at his aunt through red eyes. Cass froze for a second, taking in the sight of him before saying in soft tones, "How about you take the day off, okay? I can take care of the cafe by myself, don't worry."

"No." Tadashi got up, kicking pieces of broken plate away as he did so. He turned back to the sink and turned on the faucet. He pulled more plates from the bin, took the sponge and started wiping them off under the water. "No, I can work. I-I'm fi..."

He couldn't finish the sentence without his voice cracking. Tadashi bit his lip and closed his eyes, bowing his head towards the ground. He couldn't hold up the sponge, let it fall towards the drain.

He felt a hand cover his own, and Tadashi opened his eyes, looked down at Aunt Cass. She gazed back, green into brown, unwavering.

"Tadashi," she said, soft but firm. "Stop. I mean it."

The boy thought of arguing, but his heart wasn't into it. He just sighed and dropped his arms, turning away from the sink and into Cass' arms. She hugged him, tilting her chin up over his shoulder to say, "You're a big boy, Tadashi, but even big boy's need to sleep. Go back to bed."

"But if I don't –"

"The world isn't going to end just because you took a break." Aunt Cass interrupted him, drawing back to give him a small smile. "Trust me. I'm an old pro at this... Well, not _that_ old, but you know what I mean."

"Well, if you say so..." Tadashi finally pulled away, but bent to help pick up the broken porcelain pieces, only for Aunt Cass to push him away. It took several more of her encouragements to get him out the cafe kitchen and back up the stairs, and the rest was up to him. Tadashi didn't have much to fight with after that. As soon as he saw his bed (Hiro still sleeping in it), an overwhelming sense of exhaustion came over him, as though Tadashi hadn't gotten any sleep at all the earlier night.

Although it felt so utterly wrong to be going back to bed, and knowing he should be keeping up on recent news, Tadashi realized the wisdom in Aunt Cass' words as he sunk back onto his mattress. Tadashi could only stare up at the ceiling. Nothing was going to change, whether he was there to see it or not.

Hiro was still here. So were Aunt Cass, and all of his friends. Right now, he was grateful for what he had.

He would later understand that he had been in shock, and it had finally hit then. Tadashi didn't know what to think, what to do, what to say. Maybe Aunt Cass understood that, and that was why she sent him back up here.

Hiro, still asleep, seemed to sense the return of Tadashi's presence and curled up right next to him. With his arm now taken hostage by the little demon, Tadashi had no choice but to stay in bed. As much as his head hurt and muscles ached, sleep remained out of reach.

So, instead, Tadashi closed his eyes, taking a deep breath and clearing out all other thoughts from his head. He concentrated on his memories, the day when the auditorium burned down, the day Professor Callaghan died. He knew the information he was looking for was there, he just had to remember it first...

He retraced his steps within his own memory. He remembered shouting at Hiro, trying to get to the burning building. Hiro had been pulling on his arm, for once the wiser of the two – he had known better than to put himself in danger, and had enough of a head on him to keep Tadashi from trying to do the same.

_They had just run down from the parking lot to see the fire. Dozens of people were running in the opposite direction, screaming and shouting and coughing. Tadashi knew his friends were safe - he had seen them earlier hanging out at the ridge overlooking the bay. _

_But all was not well. The final person exiting the burning exhibition hall was a woman, who Tadashi stopped to ask, "Are you all right? Did everyone make it out?"_

"_I'm fine, but Professor Callaghan is still inside!" the woman cried, pointing behind her at the doorways._

_Tadashi let the woman go, half out of shock, half in a newfound urgency. He faced the building and he parsed through every contingency in a single moment. He couldn't hear any sirens in the distance, the flames were getting too hot, and by the time help arrived, it would be too late. There was no one else, no rescue for Callaghan if they just waited around. Who knew how long the building had left to stand? What_

_The only way Callaghan would live is if Tadashi actually _did_ something about it - he had to! If it was Hiro or Aunt Cass or - _his parents _- Tadashi would do the exact same thing for them. He couldn't just let his favorite teacher die when he had the chance of saving him!_

"_No, Tadashi!" Hiro pulled on Tadashi's arm, digging his heels into the dirt as if he could somehow anchor the two of them to the spot."What are you doing? You can't go in there!"_

_But Tadashi took advantage of his height and superior strength to push Hiro away. It still left a sharp stab of pain in his gut at the thought - how could he do that to Hiro? How could he choose Callaghan over his own brother?_

_It wasn't important right now. Tadashi decided to dwell on it later. Right now, he had to focus on getting Callaghan out of that fire alive._

"_Just stay here!" he ordered his brother, watched the dismay in Hiro's face. It hurt, but Tadashi had already decided on what he was going to do and wasn't going to back down now. He pulled the hat off his head, pressed it into Hiro's hands so he'd have something else to hold onto instead of his sleeve. "Hold onto this until I get back, okay?"_

_Then he turned and ran._

"_Tadashi!" Hiro called after him, his screams swallowed by the roar of flames. "_Tadashi_!"_

_In the midst of the bright flames and sting in his eyes, Tadashi couldn't see much. The smoke had made his eyes water and he was so focused on Callaghan at the time that anyone else had been put on the backburner. He remembered, as he was racing up those steps, someone walking out of the fire._

...well, maybe not walking, exactly. Tadashi couldn't quite remember if they really were walking or actually running – the typical response when escaping a burning building.

_In front of him, the figure moved silently, floating out like a ghost, black as midnight with flashing eyes. He couldn't remember if those eyes had any color – just the fact that they were there, sticking out from the dark silhouette like two soft moons. _

_Tadashi shifted to the right, intending to move around this last escapee. On sight alone, he knew it wasn't Professor Callaghan, miraculously walking out of the fire. The figure was too short, too skinny to be the robust teacher. They should have kept moving, kept running from the fire, but they didn't and for a second Tadashi was confused._

_The confusion was overridden, however, when his mind prioritized who was still inside. So maybe the woman was wrong, it hardly mattered. Callaghan was still inside - the last one, for real this time. The other person was safe and out of the way and it was one less thing that Tadashi had to worry about._

_The heat was so intense that Tadashi had a brief moment where he questioned his sanity. What the hell was he thinking, going in there? But then he saw an opening within the flames, a way in without getting burned. He surged forward, already thinking of finding Callaghan - who was probably only a few feet away, really, how far could he be? _

_It'd be an in-and-out job; everyone will be safe before the firefighters even got there._

_That's when the figure lunged at him. An arm shot out, grabbing Tadashi, yanking him back from the flames. He remembered the feel of their hand, despite everything - hot and rough and slightly damp. It occurred to him that the figure might have been burned, beneath all that soot and ash. He couldn't remember if they had left any blood on him or not._

_Tadashi, still caught up in his moment of heroism, tried to fight off the figure who was stalling him from his destiny. At the time, it felt like it went on forever, when it probably only lasted a second or two._

_It probably saved his life._

Although Tadashi hadn't been aware of it at the time, in retrospect he remembered_a sudden suction of air, like the building in front of him was taking a deep breath, and for a few seconds the flames seemed to dim. He didn't understand it to being a preamble to the following collapse, but the figure must have, because it was in that moment when he or she tackled him off of the steps._

_Tadashi remembered hair in his face. Long hair, burned and singed and smoking. It was why Tadashi had thought it might have been a woman._

_Then - _

_FWOOOM!_

_They were already in the air when the shockwave slammed into them. It had shaken them apart, and the two landed some meters apart. _

_ When Tadashi would look for that person again, they were long gone. All he could hear was the sound of Hiro yelling at him, "Tadashi! Tadashi!"_

_ Why was he still shouting? Don't cry, Hiro, don't cry. It's all right, I'm safe. I'm alive. I'm still here. _

_ "Tadashi!"_

_ What? I'm right here! In the dirt, a little bruised maybe, but I'm fine. I never made it to the building, I wasn't inside when it blew up. I'm fine!_

_"Tadashi!"the voice became louder and louder, and Tadashi was starting to get annoyed, until he felt the sudden sensation of falling and then Hiro's voice sounded like it was right next to him: "Tadashi..._yo, Tadashi, wake up!"

"Ugh, what?" Tadashi blinked his eyes open, surprised to find how difficult it was to lift his head.

Hiro was standing at the edge of his bed, hands on his hips and a funny little smirk on his face. "Well, the nerd finally decided to wake up. Come on, Cass says dinner's ready."

"Dinner?!" Tadashi shot straight out bed, staring at Hiro before whipping towards his alarm clock. Holy crap, it was five thirty! Did he really sleep that long? The dream couldn't have been more than five minutes! "Why didn't you wake me up sooner?"

"I didn't know what to do!" Hiro cried, waving his arms in the air, to better emphasis his helplessness in this new and unusual situation. "You're the one who has to wake me up, not the other way around. Since when do you sleep in? Don't you usually help Aunt Cass with the cafe in the morning?"

"I – yeah," Tadashi wasn't sure what to say without telling Hiro what had happened earlier that day. "But she let me have the day off. I was...I was really tired."

"Really? I hadn't noticed," Hiro scoffed, falling for the bluff. Tadashi supposed his actual sleepiness helped, and prayed that Aunt Cass wouldn't give him away later that night. "Come on, I'm starving. And Aunt Cass made my favorite - hot wings!"

"Wait, your favorite? Why not my favorite?" Tadashi groaned, finally rolling out of bed. He had to admit, after five plus hours of sleep he didn't need, a dream that kind of freaked him out, and still feeling pretty crappy, hot wings was the last thing he needed right now. That much spiciness combined with _that_ much exhaustion?

It was just asking for a complete and utter melt down.

He also was not looking forward to experiencing the burn of spicy food - a level of heat he had only recently been through when almost running towards his death, and was not keen on reliving the memory (for the third time).

When he finally got downstairs, both Hiro and Aunt Cass were already sitting at the table. His little brother was currently shoveling as many chicken wings into his mouth as he could and covering his face in hot sauce, while Aunt Cass was somewhat more civilized, attacking only one piece of meat at a time.

It was quite difficult to hide his distaste for the meal, but Tadashi sat down anyways. He could _smell_ the spiciness just wafting off and it made him want to gag.

Aunt Cass, who seemed to notice the look on Tadashi's face, swallowed before saying, "Is everything all right, Tadashi? You look a little pale."

"I'm just..." Tadashi had to force a smile on his face. "...fine. Do you, um," he cleared his throat, trying not to sound too awkward but then realizing it was probably too late. "Do you have anything else to eat? Leftovers? I'm not really feeling the, uh, hot wings vibe tonight."

"Sure, honey." Aunt Cass gave him a warm look, a secret understanding passing between them. Tadashi knew she was still thinking about what had happened that morning and was glad that she wasn't going to bring it up, at least not in front of Hiro. "Check the fridge. We've got meatloaf from the other night, and stir-fry from when your friends came over."

"Stir-fry sounds good," Tadashi got out of the chair and made a bee line for the kitchen. He could hear Hiro sniggering through his food, but didn't confront him about it. Instead, as he pulled the Tupperware from the fridge, Tadashi called over, "You know, I think I'm going to eat this upstairs."

"If you want to. You sure, Tadashi?" Aunt Cass looked over her shoulder, fixing him with a concerned frown. Even Hiro looked confused now. It didn't help that Aunt Cass seemed to be asking more than the necessary amount of questions. Now Hiro might suspect something, which was the last thing Tadashi wanted.

Aunt Cass' eyes seemed to bore into him, as though she could read his mind if she stared at Tadashi long enough. "Are you feeling all right?"

Tadashi hesitated before he answered that.

"Yeah. I'm fine."

And then he went back to his room.

Although the idea of sleep was tempting, Tadashi realized he had enough for the next few hours. Instead, he sat at his desk, turning on his computer and eating cold noodles with chopsticks as he waited for the system to boot up.

The desire to watch the news was almost overwhelming. Even though they had pretty fast Internet here, the browser seemed to take ages to load, videos buffered for eons before they could play smoothly, and even Tadashi's own fingers typing across the keyboard felt more sluggish than usual.

He was not surprised to learn that news of the fire at the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology had gone nationwide. Millions of dollars worth of technology and engineering gone up cloud of toxic black smoke - with only one casualty.

Tadashi could only watch the first couple minutes of the video exclusive:

"_I'm here at San Fransokyo's Institute of Technology, at the location of its former exhibition hall where student showcases had taken place last night._" The reporter said, a woman with a blond ponytail and fancy trench coat. The broadcast seemed to have been taken earlier that day, showing an overcast sky with firefighters and detectives working in the background, amongst the charred, wet ruins of the building. "_As you can see, Bill, the results of the fire were devastating. Almost every project was destroyed, countless hours of student work now piles of ash. The inferno last night could be seen from almost a mile away - it's amazing to consider how low the casualty rate was. Unfortunately, the police have yet to release any information about the situation, only that they have yet to learn where and how the fire started."_

_ "Police have confirmed the identity of the man who died in the fire as Robert Callaghan, a professor here at SFIT. He was the only person inside when the exhibition hall collapsed." _The woman said, and Tadashi began to tremble in his seat. "_The school board has yet to release a statement on the matter, but they assure us that they will have something for us by Monday. There will be a vigil in Professor Callaghan's honor tonight, and a memorial service later next week."_

Tadashi hit the exit button so hard he almost broke his finger.

For the next five minutes, he just stared at his screen, unable to compute what he just heard. _It's real. It really happened, didn't it? Callaghan's dead. I'm never going to see him again. I'll never talk to him again. I won't get advice from him again. I'll never find him in his office when I need his help. The school's going to shut down the robotics program, because the only man good enough to lead it is dead now. I'll never finish Baymax. Callaghan will never get to see him when he's completely built._

_ I'll never get to show him how great Hiro can be._

_ I never got to say good-bye._

_ I should've said good-bye_. _Why didn't I say good-bye? How would they know that I missed them? That I loved them? They must have been angry at me, their ungrateful son. It was just a stupid game - why did I have to make it such a big deal? I didn't even _like_ that game, I just wanted to play it. I would've thrown it away, destroyed it, just to get a chance to say good-bye to Mom and Dad –_

Tadashi didn't realize he was crying until his computer went to sleep, the screen going dark, and he finally saw his own reflections staring back at him.

Frustrated with himself, Tadashi wiped at his eyes and scrambled his mouse, refusing to look at himself any longer. Instead, he turned towards his search engine, looked up the date and time for the vigil, before grabbing his coat and hat and thumping down the stairs.

He practically leapt over the second-floor landing before going down the last flight of stairs. There came the scraping of chairs against wood floors as Aunt Cass and Hiro got up from their chairs, startled by Tadashi's behavior. He was already half-way across the cafe floor when Aunt Cass came racing down, Hiro right behind her. "Tadashi, where are you going?"

"I'm..." Tadashi chose his words carefully. "I'm just going out for a ride."

"I'll come with you!" Hiro piped up, pulling around Aunt Cass with an expectant smile as Tadashi headed opened the door.

He held up a hand, and Hiro stopped in his tracks. It twisted Tadashi's gut to see the Hiro's face fall, but in his heart it felt like the right thing to do. "No, Hiro. I'm sorry, I just...I want to be alone for a while."

Unable to witness their reactions, Tadashi looked down as he headed out the door. He was already settling down onto his moped when the door opened again, jingling from the overhead bell.

Tadashi looked up. It was Hiro, his head just barely peaking past the open door. His eyes were wide and he was biting his lip, like he used to do in high school. He looked so much like the quiet little kid he used to be, afraid to speak up in class because the other kids would pick on him, trying to make himself look smaller so no one would push him around in the halls.

High school had not been kind to Hiro. Tadashi supposed it was a good thing his little brother graduated so quickly. Two years of high school was better than four, even if you were younger and smaller than everyone else.

It seemed as though he had been brought back to the past, talking to the Hiro before he graduated. In quiet words, almost a whisper, Hiro asked, "When are you coming back?"

"Before ten, maybe" Tadashi said, trying to keep his tone soft and reassuring, even though he wasn't entirely sure his answer was going to be accurate. Still, he didn't want Hiro to feel abandoned, even though that's kind of what he was doing at the moment. "I'll be home by midnight at the latest."

"You promise?"

Tadashi started his engine before offering Hiro a small smile, the only one he could manage. "I promise."


	3. Chapter 3

**Well, this chapter was supposed to have more scenes, but this one turned out to be longer than I thought so I'm dividing them. The next one should be happier. Maybe.**

**(probably not.)**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

><p>Chapter Three<p>

The wind was cool on his face as Tadashi zipped through the streets, his moped powering up the hills and speeding down the slopes.

He knew his way to SFIT like the back of his hand - he could probably make it there blind-folded, so long as he wasn't in any danger of traffic.

There was no reason to go fast – Tadashi took his time, admiring the city as he drove along. He never realized how bright the lights were, the vivid colors of all those signs, the beautiful curvature of the roofs and architecture of the houses around him. People lived here, people who had lives entirely separate from his own, who knew about the fire, about the death and destruction, but were no more affected by it than someone else on the other side of the country.

Tadashi wondered what it was like to be so removed from the situation like that. Didn't those people know what they had missed, never knowing Robert Callaghan? Never fully understanding what this man did to change the world?

But there was something to be envious about. Those people, those strangers didn't have to feel the pain of losing a friend. All they saw was a name, a face, and a legacy. That was all Robert Callaghan had become to them; someone to mourn in on moment, forgotten in the next.

The thoughts of living another life like that had distracted him, to the point that he almost ran into a fire hydrant – avoiding it at the last second when the headlights of a car heading in the opposite direction blinded him and shook Tadashi straight out of his reverie. The tires squealed beneath him and Tadashi almost lost control and for a split second considered bailing the vehicle, until it righted itself and he was back on all wheels.

A little shaken, Tadashi eased up on the accelerator. He shook himself over, telling himself to focus on the road and not get distracted by irrelevant thoughts. He did not survive a fire to kill himself on the road to a dead man's vigil.

His mother would chastise him for not being careful; what example was he setting for Hiro, who (at the time) did everything his cool big brother did? Tadashi considered himself the more responsible between himself and Hiro, yet it was startling to consider how often he got into trouble. What would his family think of him?

Oh, man. What was he going to say to Hiro when he got back?

Tadashi knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that Hiro would be waiting for him. The genius was probably making a list of all of the questions he wanted to ask right now. Aunt Cass didn't like it when Hiro stayed up late, but the older Hamada's knew better than to think he would listen, especially in a situation like this.

He was worried of letting Hiro see him like this. Tadashi wasn't quite sure how to explain it himself, and he hoped that Hiro wouldn't think that something was wrong - or worse, consider himself the problem. Tadashi did not spend his high school years protecting Hiro from bullies just to let his little brother beat himself up without their help.

No, when Tadashi got home later that night, he would make sure to remind Hiro that having a little brother was one of the best things that had ever happened to him, that he was proud of Hiro, and that he didn't spend three weeks helping his little brother build his micro bots just to let him think he was worthless.

Right now, Tadashi had to sort out his psyche.

Unfortunately, he had no idea how long that would take.

Eventually, he pulled into SFIT's campus. After finding a place to park, Tadashi headed to the vigil - it wasn't hard to find, all he had to do was follow the glow of lights up the hill. It overlooked the now-fallen Exhibition hall. Roughly two hundred or so people had gathered, most holding candles. There didn't seem to be too much organization to the place - most were speaking to each other in low whispers, a few were weeping, and there were the rare few actually laughing and seeming to have a good time.

If anyone was annoyed by Tadashi's lateness, they didn't say anything. A woman standing beside a crate full of candles handed him one with a kind smile – he held it as she lit it with a match, and the flame flickered to life between his fingers. He thanked the woman before moving on.

He continued forward, trying to be as polite as possible as he made his way to the front of the crowd. It was oddly quiet, except for one lone voice, a man making a speech. "...all of you here tonight...terrible tragedy...pay our respects to one of the greatest pioneers in his field..."

What he saw made his jaw drop.

The blond hair and long nose were instantly recognizable. Dressed in an immaculate black suit (with a boutonnière and champagne glass no less), Alistair Krei spoke with a slick charm that didn't fit with the words he was saying: "Robert Callaghan was an old colleague of mine, and one that will be dearly missed. I have never met a man more passionate than Robert himself; and not just for the science he loved, but in every aspect of his life.

There was the bitter taste of bile on Tadashi's tongue. Seeing Krei talk about Callaghan like they were old friends made him sick. It was bad enough the man had to prey on Hiro's naïveté, but now he take advantage of a tragedy to make himself look better? Callaghan had been right about Krei - all the businessman cared about was his reputation and his company's stock values.

Unbelievable.

Just hearing Krei's voice made Tadashi want to leave, but a strange curiosity had him firmly planted to the spot. Alistair continued, in the same doleful tones: "He never took anything for granted - Robert questioned everything, and on more than a few occasions we would clash over philosophical differences...but in the end, Robert always had the best at heart, he only wanted to help people to the best of his ability. It was one of the many qualities I admired in that man."

Tadashi felt something inside him wilt. As much as he disliked Alistair Krei, the man had managed to make the boy feel guilty. Callaghan had been Tadashi's role model since he was ten and first read about him in a _Popular Science _magazine that detailed his revolutionary laws of robotics. It had been a dream come true when the man became Tadashi's mentor - all he ever wanted was to be just like Robert Callaghan, to be just half as great a man as he.

And Tadashi couldn't help but think how terribly he failed.

"So I stand here today to say, personally, that I think that this was how Callaghan would've wanted it," Alistair Krei said, and Tadashi felt a moment of resentment - who was _he_ to say what Callaghan would have liked? - before the man went on to say, "Surrounded by his friends and students, in the place where science can be explored in all directions, where the brilliant people from all around the globe gather here, and change the world every day. Robert Callaghan would be proud of us, of what we've done, and what we will do."

There was light clapping as the man finished with a small bow. Tadashi had to admit, it was a pretty good speech, the man certainly had skill in public speaking. It probably came with the territory, what with constantly being on the news all the time, and running a billion-dollar corporation and all.

Still, Tadashi didn't like the way Alistair said the inclusive 'we' like he thought he was a part of them – when the young man knew for a fact that Krei had never attended this school, and was only considered an honorary member thanks to all his donations and hiring engineers and designers from SFIT – which in turn gave the school great publicity.

In the end, Tadashi's opinion of the man remained more or less the same. Alistair Krei was a smooth-talking, opportunistic businessman. Maybe Krei spoke candidly here, but that didn't stop the notion that he was a casually dishonest man.

Murmurings filled the air as the crowd waited for another speaker. Tadashi looked down at the candle in his hands. It seemed so sweet and innocent, when only last night Tadashi had been standing in front of a raging inferno. There seemed to be an irony to holding a candlelight vigil for a man who died in a fire, but Tadashi was not dumb enough to bring it up.

Maybe he should say something. Callaghan had been his mentor, after all, and that had to mean _something_, right?

But he didn't know what to say. When he tried to search for word, nothing came to mind, at least nothing that Krei hadn't already said.

What did that mean? What kind of student was Tadashi if he couldn't say anything new, anything meaningful about the man who helped him become the person he was today?

Eventually, someone took the spotlight with their guitar and started singing 'Auld Lang Syne'. For the first few bars, the woman sung alone, before a few other voices joined in. Then it spread, as more people heard and went along with the tune, until almost half the crowd had joined in.

While Tadashi didn't know all the words, he managed to hum along. He even smiled a bit, surrounded by all these people, singing the same song. There was a sort of sweet perfection to it, everyone pausing to share this moment together, holding their candles under the dark sky.

Singing became a popular pastime after that. There seemed to be no shortage of sad, nostalgic songs to be sung, and Tadashi spent most of the time thinking to himself, not really talking to anyone. He drifted towards the edge of the hill; it wasn't particularly large, but gave partial view to the burned exhibition hall below. Tadashi could see that parts of it were still standing - a piece of wall here, a column there - but the rest was shrouded in darkness.

He stared at it for who knew how long, only to be interrupted when someone eventually drew up to him and said, "Hm, didn't expect to see you here."

Tadashi had to keep himself from cringing at the sound of Krei's voice. He had hoped that the man wouldn't pick him out in a crowd, but he supposed separating himself from them did not help the matter. Still, he mustered a bit of steel as he turned around and faced the man who almost stole Hiro's invention.

Alistair Krei still had his champagne glass in his hand. He gave Tadashi an enigmatic smile, "I didn't expect you to come alone. Don't you have a little brother, oh, what's his name, it's on the tip of my tongue...Harry? Hoover?"

"_Hiro_," Tadashi snapped, not willing to be patient with this man, who surely couldn't have forgotten Hiro's name so soon (especially considering how much of an interest he took in the boy's invention). He had the distinct feeling that this man did not come here for a little chit-chat. "His name is Hiro. You tried to take one of his micro-bots, remember?"

"Oh, yes, that was just an honest mistake, I assure you," the man replied without so much as a twitch. It was frustrating to see a man unperturbed by Tadashi's anger. "But you have to admit, your little brother is quite the genius, and I merely wanted to help him reach his full potential. Where's the harm in that?"

"Everything," Tadashi muttered to himself, turning back towards the vista and leaning against the railing. He just wished Krei would leave him alone.

If the man could read social cues, he was really bad at it, or else didn't care. Alistair Krei continued on as if he hadn't heard Tadashi speak. "You're that Hamada boy, right? Callaghan always spoke so highly of you, your skill in robotics. I'm surprised you didn't have a presentation during the exhibition; if you're anywhere near as talented as your brother, I'm sure you would've given those judges something to think about."

Tadashi made a face, trying to find the veiled insult in Krei's words. "My project isn't done yet. Even if it were, I wouldn't show it at the exhibition – that was Hiro's day to shine."

"And shine he did," Krei said in a tone Tadashi didn't like. He seemed almost amused by the situation, in a manner that felt entirely inappropriate considering the current event taking place. Why were they talking about Hiro when this was about Callaghan? "Will he still attend SFIT in the fall, after all this? I heard the school board might run into problems after this...this tragedy. The applied science department won't be the same."

"No, it won't," Tadashi said with a huff, blowing out his candle and getting up off the rail. He turned towards Krei, finally facing him head on. He looked the businessman in the eye, and for the first time saw a flicker of apprehension in the man's eye. "It's going to be _better_, because that's what Callaghan would've wanted. Maybe you could think about that."

And, in a move that was positively daring, Tadashi shoved the candle into Krei's hand –with perhaps more force than necessary – and added, "You know, try something new, instead."

The look on Alistair Krei's face was priceless, and Tadashi walked away with that image permanently imbedded into his mind. It felt good to finally one-up the man, but now Tadashi was angry, which was not what he expected to achieve when coming to a quiet little vigil. This was not how it was supposed to happen.

He was supposed to reminisce. He was supposed to get closure. He was supposed to feel better, or at least okay enough that he wouldn't need to pretend in front of Hiro.

But Tadashi didn't get any of that. In fact, he wondered if coming here just made it all worse.

(How was he ever going to make it through the funeral? It daunted him, and Tadashi could barely comprehend the thought – so he pushed it from his mind to be dealt with at a later time, when he was in a better condition to handle it).

Now he felt like he couldn't stay. Not with Krei around, at least – Tadashi was suddenly afraid that the man might have a vengeful side, and get back at Tadashi. So he decided to leave, even though the vigil was still going on strong.

Getting on his moped, Tadashi found justification when he finally checked his watched. About a quarter after midnight – Tadashi had no idea how the time got away from him like that, but now he was going to be late getting home.

He groaned inwardly as he kicked the scooter into gear. Ugh, Hiro was going to kill him.

That is, if there was anything left once Aunt Cass was done.


	4. Chapter 4

**This was the scene that was supposed to be at the end of Chapter Three, but I felt that they were independent of each other enough to serve their own chapters. Its also why I consider the next chapter (the funeral) to be separate from this one. I wasn't entirely sure if I wanted to leave this by itself, since it seems so short and little happens, but because of what happens before and after, it probably should. **

**Just another one of those tough editorial decisions, folks.**

* * *

><p>Chapter Four<p>

When Tadashi returned to the Lucky Cat Café, the windows were completely dark. All of them, except for the one at the very top, on the third floor. He could see it flicker and shift with movement from inside.

Tadashi sighed, hanging his head as he pulled off his helmet. So Hiro had decided to stay awake after all. Well, there was no way Tadashi was avoiding this one.

Time to face the music.

His reluctance to deal with Hiro came in the form of sluggish and quiet movements. Tadashi winced when the bell above the door announced his return. He expected Hiro to come bounding down the stairs to confront him, alerted by the sound, but Tadashi was surprised when that never happened.

Still making a point to be careful, Tadashi grabbed the bell overhead so the door could shut silently. Then he crept across the floor, managing to remain quiet until about half-way through, when his hip bumped against a table he didn't see. Its legs ground against the floor, sounding like a buzz saw in an empty theater. Another step forward, and Tadashi nearly tripped on the nearby chair. He grabbed the back before it could fall, cursing at his own clumsiness.

He was going to wake up the whole neighborhood if he kept this up. Tadashi eventually just stopped moving for a second, not willing to make any more noise.

When nothing happened (apparently everyone slept like rocks around here), Tadashi heaved a sigh and started walking again. He made it to the stairs without incident. Leaning more than he should have on the handrail, Tadashi climbed up the stairs, finding his way in the darkness. He considering turning on the lights so he could at least see where he was going, but decided against it. Aunt Cass had already gone to bed, and Tadashi didn't want to wake her up.

Tadashi took a deep breath to steel himself before climbing to the final floor. The lamplight from their bedroom spilled down the stairs, a warm yellow light that welcomed his return.

He expected to see Hiro on his bed, ready to explode with thousands of questions as soon as Tadashi revealed himself. But when Tadashi came upon the landing and looked around he was once more surprised not to see Hiro's mass of fluffy hair where he thought he would. The room was entirely silent and at first Tadashi didn't see Hiro at all.

That's because Hiro was sleeping, but not in his bed. The boy was resting his head on his desk, arms for pillows, and snoring softly under the lamp he forgot to turn off. Beside him on the desk was Mochi, who was currently in the process of cleaning himself, finding a spot under the lamp that was most comfortable, casting large shadows across the walls.

Well, that explained why Tadashi thought he saw movement upstairs.

"He wanted to stay up until you got back," came a soft voice behind Tadashi. A hand rested on his shoulder, and he turned around to see Aunt Cass standing next to him. She was in her pajamas, clutching her robe around her, and giving Tadashi a small smile, "How are you feeling?"

"Better, I think," Tadashi said, rubbing the back of his head. He had to admit, he was still feeling pretty satisfied with how he handled Alistair Krei earlier. Somehow, it eased the pain of Callaghan's loss, just a little bit. He didn't know how long that feeling would last, though. It was hard to say when he would feel better as a whole – if he did at all.

Such negative thoughts he kept to himself. Aunt Cass took his word for it and said, "That's good, but don't be afraid to talk to me, okay? There's nothing wrong with discussing, you know...what happened."

"I know," Tadashi said, but he was glad of Aunt Cass' reassurance. Whether or not he would take her up on that offer was left to be seen. "Thanks, Aunt Cass."

"Just don't go to bed too late, all right, kiddo?" she told him, a hint of reproach in her tone. After last semester's finals, Aunt Cass was much more careful with how late she let them stay up – because if Tadashi was awake until four in the morning, then so was Hiro, and two tired, brain-exhausted boys was worse than one. "And don't worry about the cafe tomorrow. Just sleep in."

"But –" Tadashi started to protest, unwilling to shirk another day of work over a simple (or not so simple...) matter of emotions.

"Doctor's orders," Aunt Cass interrupted him, shaking her head with a small chuckle. She pushed him towards his bed, adding, "No one's ever complained about getting too much sleep. I promise it won't hurt."

Tadashi sighed, relenting to his aunt's will and shuffling over to his bed. "If you say so."

"Good night, Tadashi," Aunt Cass said, hand lingering on his shoulder, and giving him one last, long look before heading back downstairs.

"'Night," he replied half-heartedly.

A few seconds later he heard the door to Aunt Cass' bedroom close. Tadashi glanced over his shoulder, watching Hiro as he snored away. Mochi meowed at him and he wandered over, petting the cat before he could wake up the boy. Mochi could be very demanding when he wanted to be.

How long had Hiro sat there, wondering when Tadashi would home? Had this happened a week ago, Hiro would've taken the opportunity to go bot-fighting. What had been going on in Hiro's head? Did he feel abandoned, did he feel left behind? Was he upset that Tadashi had once more chosen Callaghan over him again, even if he didn't mean to? Because it was sure starting to feel that way.

He ran his hand across Hiro's head, ruffling his hair like their father used to when Hiro was little. Hiro had been excitable when he was younger, perhaps more so then than now. A favorite game of his was to run around your legs with the intent to slow you down and pay attention to him. Hiro was quite the little genius back then, too, because that tactic turned out to be extremely effective.

Dad had been surprisingly good-natured about it. Instead of getting angry or impatient with Hiro (like Tadashi did), Dad just laughed, ruffled Hiro's hair, before picking him up and placing him in his crib.

Tadashi wished he had the same eternal patience as his father, who always seemed to know what to do with Hiro when he got into trouble. Or the way their mother could soothe a crying Hiro with just a warm hug and some consoling words. Somehow, his parents always seemed to understand Hiro better than his brother could. How did they do it?

(Then again, they might never have anticipated the whole bot-fighting fiasco. How would they have reacted to learning that their baby boy was partaking in illegal activities?)

Tadashi decided he would never know. The only thing he could do would be to try his best. Hiro was capable of great things; as long as Tadashi got to see that one day, then it would be worth it.

The bay window was cracked open and a cold breeze blew in; the papers on Hiro's desk rustled, the posters on the wall fluttering slightly. Mochi curled up under the warm lamp light while Hiro shivered in his sleep, shifting in his chair and burrowing his face in his arms.

Tadashi considering moving Hiro to his bed, where it would be warmer and softer, but his brother seemed comfortable where he rested; Tadashi didn't want to risk waking him up from a perfectly fine sleep and instead ignite the surely subsequent interrogation that he was still trying to avoid.

Then, Tadashi got an idea. He shrugged off his green blazer and, with careful movements so as not to disturb him, rested it over Hiro's shoulders. The blazer, still warm, stirred Hiro, but he remained asleep.

Tadashi smiled to himself, considering his work done, and turned off the lamp light (much to Mochi's displeasure). He ran a hand through his little brother's hair one last time.

"Good night, Hiro," he whispered.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

The last time Tadashi wore a suit, it was for Hiro's high school graduation.

Aunt Cass had told him that the event wasn't formal, and he didn't have to get so dressed up. But Tadashi wanted to, because he felt the occasion required it. Graduating was important to Hiro, to finally leave the school that both brought him here but also weighed him down...to get through was an accomplishment, especially at his age, and dressing appropriately seemed like one of the best ways to show it.

(Of course, Tadashi then took the opportunity to guilt Hiro over it, by taking dozens of pictures and teasing his little brother for not taking the event as seriously as himself. Hiro wanted to take off his robes as soon as the whole ceremony was over, but thanks to Tadashi's efforts Hiro ended up wearing them for most of the day. They eventually agreed that Hiro could take them off, so long as Tadashi got to wear the funny hat).

Now the memory felt tainted, wearing the suit for this dreary day.

Hiro had to wear a suit, too, one of Tadashi's hand-me-downs that no longer fit. Forgoing the jacket because it was still a little too large in the shoulders, Hiro just wore the shirt and pants, and was currently struggling with the tie. He never had to tie one before and Aunt Cass disapproved of him using the clip-on (which was a bright red color).

Tadashi had just finished brushing his teeth when he turned around and watched Hiro standing in front of the floor mirror, trying for the tenth time to loop the tie, and failing once again. The boy grumbled, "Ugh, these things are _impossible!_ Do I have to wear it?"

"Yeah, bonehead, you do," Tadashi said with a beleaguered smile. He emerged from the bathroom, extending a hand out in offer, "Here, let me help."

"No way!" Hiro ducked out from under Tadashi's hand, his own hands tangled with the tie. He struggled to free them, looking like a dancing chicken as his elbows flapped helplessly. "I'm not a baby anymore, Tadashi. I can do it myself."

"You know, for a genius, you have a lot of trouble mastering basic life skills."

"Shut up."

"Are you sure you don't want me to help?" Tadashi winced when Hiro finally managed to free one hand, only to accidentally punch himself in the chin. "You don't complain when Aunt Cass does it."

"Ow," Hiro rubbed his sore jaw before shooting Tadashi a sour look. "No, because Aunt Cass doesn't try to strangle me with it."

"Hey, that was an accident, I swear!" Tadashi held up his hands in innocence, but he couldn't but help to chuckle. The near-strangling incident was the reason Hiro got a clip-on tie in the first place. "What? Come on, it was only one time. I promise I won't do it again."

"No, its fine," Hiro managed to get his other hand out and, incredibly, the tie didn't fall apart at a single tug. "See? I got it. I didn't need your help after all."

Before Tadashi could mention that Hiro had gotten the knot completely wrong, they heard Aunt Cass call from downstairs: "Boys, are you ready? We're going to be late if we don't leave now!"

"But I haven't even had lunch yet!" Hiro complained.

"You can eat on the way, Hiro," Cass said, a knowing tone in her voice. "I made each of you a sandwich. If you want anything else, you better hurry up and get it now, because I'm not making any pit-stops."

"Aw, man, I gotta get my gummy bears!" Hiro said, mostly to himself, as he grabbed his coat and tumbled down the stairs into the kitchen.

Following him, Tadashi said, "Seriously, bro? I think you can go one day without candy, don't you think?"

"Gummy bears aren't candy, dude!" Hiro called back as he sifted through the cabinets to find the candy jar. Every day Aunt Cass hid it in a different place, usually somewhere high so Hiro couldn't reach it. He was currently standing on his tiptoes, halfway to climbing on top of the counter to reach the gummy bears hiding behind the spice jars. "They are an essential food group! And I'm a growing boy, you know, I gotta have all my nutrients."

"But you only eat the red ones."

"They're the ones that taste the best," Hiro replied, finally pulling the jar down with the tips of his fingers. Tadashi assumed Hiro would only grab a handful, but he was surprised when his little brother decided to take the whole thing with him. He plucked the jar from Hiro's arms as the boy passed, saying, "And where do you think you're going with that? There's no way Aunt Cass is letting you take it into the car."

"Aw, come on!" Hiro whirled around when he looked down and saw that he no longer had the jar in his grasp. He tried reaching for it, but Tadashi held it over his head, while Hiro tried climbing up his body to reach it. "Not fair! I _need_ those, Tadashi! Or I'm going to _die_."

Tadashi made a face, not appreciating the exaggeration. Hiro had his legs wrapped around his waist and was trying to get up onto his shoulders to reach the jar, so he leaned to the right a little, making Hiro almost lose his balance. "Nice try. Just bring a bowl instead. A _small_ one!" He rectified as Hiro scrambled to grab the big popcorn bowl from the drying rack. Hiro threw him a dirty look before reaching a smaller Tuperware container. "Yeah, that's what I meant. Here, I'll even let you pick out all the red ones."

"Awesome!" that got Hiro to smile. Although they were already pushing it, Tadashi hoped they wouldn't get in trouble for wasting a couple extra minutes on this. The day wasn't going to get any easier from this point, so he might as well have a good time while he still could.

"Boys!" Aunt Cass came back up the stairs one last time, right as Tadashi was putting away the candy jar and Hiro stuffed the container behind his back so she wouldn't see. But Aunt Cass was not one to be fooled. Raising an eyebrow, she planted her hands on her hips and cast a suspicious look over her nephews. "What were you two doing?"

"Nothing," both boys said at the same time. Tadashi slammed the cabinet door shut so she wouldn't see the jar.

"Uh-_huh_," Aunt Cass pursed her lips, but it was easy to tell she was playing up her suspicion in good humor. She just rolled her eyes and waved them down, "Come on, let's get in the truck, we're already late as it is. And, Hiro! I better not find any gummy bears on the floor when I get back!"

"Busted." Hiro flushed, laughing awkwardly as a smile of chagrin pulled on his face. At least Aunt Cass didn't tell him to put it back.

He looked up as Tadashi passed, patting him on the back. "Better luck next time, Hiro."

The ride to SFIT was noticeably quiet. Aside from the hum of the engine, the traffic noises, and the sound of rain beating down on the hood of the truck, the Hamada's sat in utter silence. It felt truly strange, especially after such a jovial morning, but Tadashi didn't know how to change the situation without surreptitiously calling out on the awkwardness, making it worse, and reminding everyone why they were acting like this in the first place. The longer he waited, the worse it got, until Tadashi finally decided it wasn't worth it and accepted the (rather uncomfortable) tranquility.

The gathering for Callaghan's memorial was even smaller than that held for the vigil. They were a little late arriving, as the eulogies had already started, but the rain had eased up a bit, and that Hamadas managed to settle in without any disruption.

The memorial took place on the front steps of SFIT's welcoming gate. It was the same place where the graduation ceremony took place. Not everyone wore black but most did, and as if to mimic the sky, everyone was serious and quiet, full of low murmurings with pent up energy just shimmering on the edge, ready to burst free at just the right touch. Aunt Cass muttered something about forgetting the umbrellas, but no one else made a comment. If it were to rain, they would endure it without complaint.

A few were crying, but it didn't carry very far, and by far the loudest thing here in this quiet park was the speaker's voice, a woman Tadashi couldn't immediately name but seemed familiar. A member of the school, at least.

She said, "...Robert was a dear friend of mine. He's changed my world, and so many others. Without him, San Fransokyo wouldn't even _have_ a robotics division. He came to me with that idea, over twenty years ago, to expand this Institute's interest into other fields. I have to admit, with some regret, that at the time I thought he was crazy. We didn't have the funds to start such a thing. We wouldn't find enough students to even fill the classes. Where would the space come from? We couldn't just _build_ more without some outside help. And, of course, Robert, with all his passion and determination, supplied his _own_ money to help with this idea of his. I guess he really took our motto to heart, and that's why I'm so sad that he has left us. Robert Callaghan truly embodied the anima of this school – our desire to teach, our purpose to nurture and grow the fields of science and the people behind them. He was our heart. He reminded me what it meant to be a leader, to be responsible for San Fransokyo's Institute of Technology, and all those who lie within."

It was about fifteen minutes in did Tadashi remember that Callaghan had no family left to mourn him. It explained why there were so few people here. The man's wife had died over ten years ago, and his daughter disappearing mysteriously some time before Tadashi entered SFIT.

It was a startling thought – Tadashi had never before considered how lonely Callaghan must have been all these years; how well the man hid his sadness. Because surely the man had to be sad –Tadashi had known Callaghan to be a somber, humble man, soft-spoken yet with good humor, key traits that always had Tadashi none the wiser. He had been like that since the day he met Callaghan.

_For thirty minutes, an eighteen-year-old Tadashi sat outside Robert Callaghan's office. He had arrived far too early, but Tadashi was too nervous to leave or find something to do, in case he got distracted and missed something important. The hallway was entirely empty aside from the secretary at her desk, typing at her computer and entirely ignoring the nervous boy sitting nearby._

_ Today was probably the most important day in his entire life (so far) – this was the day where Tadashi got to meet his advisor, his teacher, the man who would go through his portfolio and decide where the boy would be headed for the rest of his life. He would look at Tadashi's ideas, his projects and plans, and decide for himself if they were any good or not. If _Tadashi _was any good or not_.

_Tadashi had tried to dress reasonably professional for the occasion, although Aunt Cass told him it wasn't a job interview –_ _he had already been accepted into the school, hadn't he? But to Tadashi, it wasn't set in stone. What if Callaghan decided that Tadashi wasn't fit for robotics? What if he thinks Tadashi is better off going in a different direction, a wrong one, like mathematics or forestry? _

_ Ugh, forestry. Tadashi didn't know anything about forestry. What was he going to do if he ended up there?_

_ Determined to make a good impression, Tadashi had bought a blazer; green with sharp lapels. It looked good on him, although the shoulders were slightly too big. Oh, well. He'd grow into it eventually. _

_ Feet tap dancing nervously on the floor, Tadashi near shot out of his chair when he heard, "Mr. Hamada, you can come in now."_

_ "O-oh, okay!" Readjusting his glasses (technically they were just for reading, but Tadashi thought they made him look smarter), Tadashi jumped out of his seat and towards the door._

_ In his haste, his toe caught against the leg of the chair and sent it toppling. At the clatter (oh crap), the boy hesitated (I'm such a klutz), turned around to fix it (idiot, you're an idiot, stop being such an idiot), changed his mind (it's okay, I have to go, I can fix it later), and went back to the door, before remembering he forgot his portfolio and scrambled back to get it, tumbling over the fallen chair in his manic attempt to do so. _

_ The secretary watched, with a single raised eyebrow, as the boy stood back up, pushed his glasses up his nose and laughing awkwardly, nonchalantly kicked the chair out of her line of sight before going back to the door. He struggled with the handle for a second, wondering if it was locked, before figuring out that he had to _push_ instead of _pull.

_ Finally (finally!) he managed to get through the door, harried and breathless, wondering if he was going to be judged on his professionalism. The office was nice, clean, neat; soft carpet floor with dark hardwood furniture and black leather seats, although he didn't see the man himself because he was too busy looking at his notes and making sure they were all there. This was _not_ one of his best moments, but he was just glad Robert Callaghan didn't have to see it. "Sorry, sorry! I just, uh – never mind –_ _I'm h-here, I'm n-not late, am I?"_

_ His words came out in a messy jumble and Tadashi couldn't get himself to calm down before he started blushing out of embarrassment. Tadashi thought it couldn't get any worse, at least until he closed the door behind him, took one step forward, and fell flat on his face._

_ The portfolio exploded beneath his chest, sending papers flying into the air. As they settled, Tadashi sort of just laid there – he wanted nothing more than to just sink into the floor right now, because he didn't want to face the reaction to his own clumsy behavior. He wasn't usually like this, but would that matter at a time like this? Would he be laughed at? Turned away? What was he going to tell Aunt Cass when he was rejected?_

_ That was just the fear talking, but to Tadashi it was pretty convincing, and right now it was a lot louder than his rational mind, which seemed to have ditched him at this crucial moment in his life._

_ "Easy there, champ," came a chuckle, and Tadashi felt hands on his arms, helping him to his feet. "How many cups of coffee did you have today?"_

_ Tadashi looked up, stunned to see his hero, Robert Callaghan, in the flesh. The man was slightly older than he expected, and wearing just some regular pants and a sweater vest (the greatest inventor in the world wore a sweater vest? Unbelievable!). But it was him. It was really him! _

_It took the boy a second to recover. "Um...seven?"_

_Aunt Cass usually didn't let the boys eat food from the cafe, since it was meant for customers, but she allowed an exception that day and Tadashi took full advantage of it. Of course, the likelihood of it happening against was very small; Aunt Cass seemed to regret her decision after expressing concern when Tadashi had his third espresso shot. _

"_Well, I take it you never do anything half-way, then," Callaghan smiled, patting Tadashi on the back and handing the boy his glasses, which had fallen off. As Tadashi fit them back on his face, the man bent down to pick up the portfolio papers. _

_Horrified, Tadashi got back to his knees and started snatching up papers left and right, saying, "No, sir, let me! It's my fault, you shouldn't have to –"_

"_It's all right, son, I'm not above helping others," the man said, shaking his head at Tadashi's earnesty. He glanced at the contents of each paper before he passed them to Tadashi, but paused at one particular page. Tadashi held out his hand, expecting it to only last a second, but Callaghan didn't seem to notice him. "Did you make this?"_

_He handed the paper to Tadashi, a blue schematics sheet covered in white colored pencil. Tadashi glanced at the design that had somehow piqued Robert Callaghan's interest. It was one of his older ideas, one that he wasn't particularly enthusiastic about since he never got it past the preliminary stage. "Oh, that old thing? I don't know, I just had this thought of a-a nursebot, I guess, but I don't like that design, and I can't figure out how to make it better...anyways, it's not really something I thought you'd be interested in."_

"_I think that's for me to decide," Callaghan gave Tadashi a skeptical look and the boy flushed and ducked his head, clutching the messy pile of papers to his chest as if he could protect himself from the judging look. But the man surprised him when he continued, "Because I think you're onto something here. I've never heard of a nursebot before – what did you intend for it to do?"_

"_Uh, well," they stood up again, and Tadashi paused to collect his thoughts, then remembered he had his notes right in front of him and glanced down. He was still reeling from Callaghan's praise – light as it was, but still, Callaghan thought _he had a good idea, how cool was that? _But why this one? He didn't even know how to start building it yet. "I guess the core concept was that it was, um, a personal healthcare companion. Like, it would work for both hospitals and homes, it would be equipped with, um, the knowledge of hundreds of medical procedures, some of which it'll be capable of, er, performing, and it'll also have an intelligent AI system to interact with patients one-on-one...but, um, I just don't know how to make it. I didn't know if it should hover, or, uh, roll, how big it should be..."_

"_Well, maybe I can help," Callaghan said and Tadashi thought he might die. "After all, that's why you applied to San Fransokyo's Institute of Technology, right? This is where your ideas become reality."_

"_Oh, I know," Tadashi nodded as the man guided him to the chair in front of his desk. It made a soft, squishy sound as he sat down, and Tadashi almost forgot what he was about to say because the chair was so comfortable. "I've wanted to go here since I was ten, sir – I read your Pop-Sci article on the Laws of Robotics and I knew, _I knew _I had to go to this nerd school."_

_Tadashi realized his mistake only too late. As Callaghan turned to sit in his seat, he fixed the boy with a curious look. "Nerd school?"_

"_That's, uh," Tadashi scratched the back of his head, looking down at his feet and wishing there was an 'undo button' for real life situations. "That's what Hiro calls it. He's my little brother."_

_Callaghan started to laugh, earning a surprised look from Tadashi. "...sir?"_

_Still laughing, Callaghan shook his head. "Sorry, son, I just never heard it put that way before. But he's not wrong – only the brightest minds go here, and it's my job to make sure you reach your full potential, Mr. Hamada."_

"_Tadashi," the boy corrected, hoping he wasn't being too bold. "Just call me Tadashi, sir."_

"_All right, Tadashi," Callaghan said, sitting back in his chair and sweeping out his hands over the desk. On it was a picture of him and a brunette girl who had his eyes, both wearing ugly Christmas sweaters. "Let's work on this nursebot of yours. Did you have a name for it yet?"_

"_Well, I always liked Baymax..."_

Tadashi blinked and found himself back at the funeral. There was something in his hand, and he looked down, surprised to find himself holding hands with Hiro. For a moment, Tadashi couldn't think; had he reached for Hiro's hand, or the other way around? Then he realized it didn't really matter and just took comfort in the fact that it happened.

His little brother sensed movement, looked up at him, and gave him a small, encouraging smile. Tadashi returned it, if a little uncertainly. No words were spoken; none had to be. In this moment, the two brothers understood each other perfectly.

Tadashi went back to watching the speaker – the Dean, Professor Holgate, a dark-haired woman in her mid-fifties, he remembered now – as she finished her eulogy. There was a quiet smattering of applause before everyone was standing up and getting in line.

The line wasn't so much a line, really, just a loose procession that went in and out. People were taking their time, walking up the steps to the altarpiece. A picture frame of a softly smiling Callaghan was surrounded by candles, flowers, and cherry blossom plants, while the guests lit sticks of incense and planted them into the bowl of ashes, or placed small candles on and around the steps, a chaotic pattern of lights. They went one by one, taking a second to pay their last respects.

Looking down, Tadashi thought back to the day he first met Callaghan and somehow, still couldn't fathom the idea that this man was just..._gone_. Like, it just didn't seem possible. How did the most intelligent, careful and cautious man he knew end up dying in a freak accident? Is that what they called ironic?

It just wasn't fair. Callaghan had so much more to offer to the world – he was the one man Tadashi was sure could understand Hiro and his genius mind, to help the kid reach his full potential.

It felt wrong to be going into college without this man anymore. Who would guide them now? Would they be any good? Would they see the same things Callaghan did?

Tadashi stood there long enough for someone to tug on his arm. Then he heard someone say his name, "Tadashi? Is that you?"

It wasn't Hiro or Aunt Cass. Surprised, he turned around, to see the blond hair of Honey Lemon standing behind him, her brow drawn down in worry. Yet, when their eyes met, she broke out in a grin of relief and she ran over and hugged him. "Oh, it is you! Hey, guys, I found him!"

As Honey Lemon dragged him down the steps, Tadashi came face to face with the rest of his friends; Gogo, with her short black and purple hair, and chewing on a piece of gum; Fred, conspicuously missing his green cap and making his red moppy head look weird; and Wasabi, dressed in a suit ironed so straight that the edges could cut steel. They were all dressed in black, like him, but instead of looking sad, they seemed worried.

"Hey, man, haven't seen you in a while," Wasabi came over and clapped Tadashi on the back. He was so unprepared for it – still in a state of shock by the sudden appearance of his friends – that Tadashi nearly crumpled beneath the heavy pat. "Where've you been lately? We were worried sick!"

"Yeah, man," Fred said, pulling his phone out of his pocket. It occurred to Tadashi that he had no idea Fred even owned a cell phone, but he couldn't remember why. "We tried calling you, but you didn't reply to any of our texts or emails."

"We tried seeing you, but Aunt Cass told us away," Gogo said, answering the unasked question. She crossed her arms, giving Tadashi a skeptical look. "She said you were feeling sick lately, which was why we couldn't see you. Is everything all right?"

"Uh, yeah, I think," Tadashi had to go back through his recent memories. Then he remembered how, on Tuesday, Aunt Cass had come up to his room telling him that his friends were there to see him. What had he said? He remembered not being in the mood to talk, and probably wanted Cass to lie just to keep them away for a little longer. She seemed to have agreed to it, apparently.

This was not something he was willing to admit. "I've just been feeling...out of it, lately."

"We all have, bro," Fred said. He offered a friendly smile, though, to show goodwill instead of resentment over Tadashi's recent behavior. "It's cool if you want time alone, though, if that's what you need."

"We just wanted to make sure you didn't fall off the face of the earth," Honey added, then with a touch of earnesty. "I talked to Hiro, and he said you were there when the building collapsed...is that true?"

"Um, yeah." Tadashi felt his chest tighten, suddenly afraid where this conversation was going. When did Hiro talk to them? Email? Phone? How did they even get his number? Or maybe he talked to them when they came over to the cafe. Why would he tell them that? It was the last thing Tadashi wanted to think about right now.

"He also said that you tried to go inside like an idiot," Gogo added. She didn't appear angry, but was probably the one that looked the closest to it. "What were you _thinking_?"

"I just..." Tadashi looked up at the sky, wishing he could just disappear. He really didn't want to start crying in front of his own friends, out of shame or grief or both. "I just wanted to save him."

There seemed to be a collective sigh of surprise at that. Even Gogo softened a little bit, but Tadashi didn't see what her next reaction was because he covered his eyes with his hand, unable to look at them as the burning in his eyes intensified. Tadashi bit his lip, a last ditch attempt to keep his composure as his breath started to tremble in his throat.

"Hey, Tadashi, it's okay," Wasabi's arms practically swallowed him whole as he pulled Tadashi into a hug. "We're all here now, it's going to be all right."

"We're not angry at you," Honey added as she joined the hug. "We just want to help, in any way we can."

"You're just really stupid sometimes," Gogo said, sticking her head under Wasabi's arm and putting a hand on his shoulder. "For a smart guy."

"If there was anything Callaghan would've wanted for us," Wasabi said. "It'd be for us to stay safe and stick together."

"Yeah, group hugs!" Fred completed the circuit, flopping against Tadashi's back. "They make everything better, see?"

At the sound of all of their voices, the resounding warmth they brought, Tadashi couldn't help but cry. He really didn't have a choice now – for the past several days he had felt bereft and lost, and all along this was what he needed. Tadashi just realized he had been more open to it sooner. At least they understood, at least they stayed.

That was all he could ask for.

"Thanks, guys," Tadashi said, his voice muffled by Wasabi's suit. It was getting a little wet thanks to his face. "You're the best."


End file.
